In letter, Iran says it's ready for nuclear talks

WASHINGTON (AP) — Iran has told world powers it is ready to resume talks as soon as possible over its disputed nuclear program, according to a letter obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, an offer that could reflect its difficulty in coping with tough U.S. and European sanctions, or amount to another delaying tactic as it moves ahead with activities that could bring it closer to developing an atomic bomb.

The letter from chief Iranian nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili was sent Tuesday, just a day before Iran claimed two major advances in producing nuclear fuel and indicated it was on the verge of imposing an oil embargo on European countries to retaliate for sanctions. The Obama administration dismissed the announcements as unimpressive and said Tehran's erratic behavior was indicative of the squeeze it is feeling as a result of hard-hitting economic measures against it.

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"We voice our readiness for dialogue on a spectrum of various issues which can provide ground for constructive and forward looking cooperation," Jalili wrote in the letter to EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, the point of contact for the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany, who are demanding that Iran freeze all uranium enrichment.

Ashton had written Jalili in October, offering Iran a new round of talks toward an agreement that "restores international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program." The West fears Iran seeks nuclear weapons, and speculation is rife that Israel may launch a pre-emptive strike to set back the program.

Jalili welcomed Ashton's statement of respect for Iran's right to peaceful nuclear energy use and said that "by committing to this approach, our talks for cooperation based on step-by-step principles and reciprocity on Iran's nuclear issue could be commenced," according to a translated copy of the letter.

A "constructive and positive attitude towards Islamic Republic of Iran's new initiatives in this round of talks could open (a) positive perspective for our negotiation," Jalili wrote. "Therefore, within this context, I propose to resume our talks in order to take fundamental steps for sustainable cooperation in the earliest possibility, in a mutually agreed venue and time."

Readers' Comments (4)

What's to talk about? American politicians need a bogeyman to distract people from their incompetence; big oil guys want access to the Iranian sea of oil; war profiteers need to sell stuff to the US government; international bankers want to preserve the petrodollar at all costs, and Israel wants to preserve its regional supremacy.

All of that means we need to attack Iran.

Oh ... Iran wants to talk about their nuclear program??? LOL. They think its about nukes??

America should remember that Iran and Russia have always been at near war, extreme fanatics working from inside Iran have always been attacking the South of Russia for ages , so why are some in DC now fabricating a near "cold war" with Russia again ? why not work with them ? and why send Christians against Christians again ? because the neocons have hijacked the DC foreign policy machine , and for them the profits and the oil are in a USA against Iran War : push the USA Soldiers and the USA Treasury into a War with Iran , and when they all go bankrupt and dead , the neocons can pick up the leftovers and take control of it all, briliant, eh ?

And that's why some media, controlled by these neocons , are trying to undermine the 2 of you , shame !

If the USA attacks Iran before Iran even has one single nuclear device assembled or missile in the works , an all out war with all the Shiites in the world will send the price of Oil to the 150 to 200 dollar a barrel level, which is what the speculators are waiting for, so could your team find out if any of these neocons or their partners have contracts on oil for these prices ? or future contracts related to this ? everybody that is betting that oil will get there in the next 24 months ?

We could be trading one trillion dollars more with Russia, also by partnering in the Arctic Sea development, in Asia's development, in security and international commerce, creating millions of jobs, but instead these extreme neocons keep all of us divided and unable to reach our full potential, shame !

How can we make sure the next generations of Americans do things better ? Many Russians are asking the oligarchs to pay for their 1990's stolen Russian State assets or give them back, and that's why Putin is so popular, and can anyone blame them ?

In many cases, some neocons in DC are siding with these thieves , the oligarchs, instead of siding with the Russian People, why?

If we don't stand for Truth and Justice in this case, next time the USA could be the one been abused and robbed by this same "extreme neocon thieves" pack, why not make sure this never , ever, happens ?

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